


Indulge

by Ya_pal_janet



Category: Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: Actual Phantom Thief Persona 5 Protagonist, Akechi Goro Attends Shujin Academy, Akechi Goro is Bad at Feelings, Akechi’s mom lives, Alternate Universe - Actual Phantom Thieves (Persona 5), Alternate Universe - No Metaverse (Persona 5), Alternate Universe - No Powers, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Shujin Academy (Persona 5), Slow Burn, Slow To Update, akira is curious
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-07
Updated: 2021-01-24
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:42:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,727
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27427372
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ya_pal_janet/pseuds/Ya_pal_janet
Summary: Goro’s mother never committed suicide and continued to raise Goro for years regardless of how much money she had or what food she could put on the table.Goro is grateful for everything his mother has done and resents his father with every fiber of his being. Using his rookie detective skills to put his father behind bars.Akira is a curious transfer student from Inaba who finds himself drawn in by Goro Akechi’s mysterious nature, and naturally tries to find out more.
Relationships: Akechi Goro & Persona 5 Protagonist, Akechi Goro & Takamaki Ann, Akechi Goro/Amamiya Ren, Akechi Goro/Kurusu Akira, Akechi Goro/Persona 5 Protagonist, Kurusu Akira & Takamaki Ann, Persona 5 Protagonist & Phantom Thieves of Hearts, Sakamoto Ryuji & Takamaki Ann, Suzui Shiho/Takamaki Ann
Comments: 19
Kudos: 99





	1. Indulge a little bit?

**Author's Note:**

> Hi there!  
> This fic was originally teased on my tumblr (sleep-deprived-onion) a few weeks back. I had originally planned this to only be a oneshot, but as with most of my work it ended up being multiple chapters. 
> 
> Just as a warning I won’t be uploading new chapters as frequently as my other fic, it’s just impossible with my school schedule currently. Hopefully the next chapter will be out around December-ish.

It had constantly been like this, or at least it for as long as he could remember. His mother worked late into the nights, sometimes bringing a stranger home, and sending him off to the bathhouse. His mother cried when she thought he was asleep. Going to bed with an empty stomach. Or the kids in his class making fun of him. He doesn't recall a time before any of it.

Goro’s mother was born in the middle of May. It was only February, but she had been crying more and more each night. This got Goro’s brain thinking. Maybe she would be happy if she got a surprise gift. But people only got gifts on holidays or their birthdays.

Traditionally for celebrating people’s birthdays, they would be given gifts like toys or clothes. Goro couldn’t get any of those without his mother finding out. He didn’t even have the money to buy any of these things for her, but he could find some.

Now there aren't many ways an eight-year-old could make much money in a few months, but Goro would find a way. Bringing in things to be recycled, doing other kid's homework, pet-sitting the neighbor's cat while they leave for work trips. These were just a few of the many things he did.

He kept all the money he would make in a shoebox tucked far away in the small closet they had. It never looked like anything more than spare change during the first few months, but it would grow more full the closer it got to his mother’s birthday.

By the night before her birthday, he had managed to make around 10,000 yen. He was very proud of this and hoped she would like it.

\---  
It was a typical day for Goro, waking up alone since his mother had already left for work. He would grab a small piece of bread and an orange for lunch and leave for school. Unlike normal days he was a ball of excitement waiting to give his mother her gift. He didn't stick around after school either.

Rushing home and preparing the shoebox full of yen. He remembered seeing how to wrap a gift somewhere and put all his heart into folding the edges of the paper around the box. Soon enough the box was wrapped in crisp pale paper. Goro had a wide smile on his face proud of his work.

His mother worked late again that night. She came back exhausted, kicking her shoes off and practically collapsing into the futon.

“Momma, please don't go to bed yet,” Goro asked softly.

“Goro? Shouldn’t you be asleep by now sweetie?" Her voice was tired as she turned around to face her child.

“I know, but I got you a gift,” he responded, only raising his voice slightly so as not to make the possible headache his mother had worse.

“A gift?” she sounded confused at Goro’s last statement.

“Uh-huh! It’s your birthday, so I got you a gift!” he said, his smile only growing wider. He passed her the neatly wrapped shoebox. She carefully undid the folds of the paper and opened the lid.

A small gasp escaped her throat. “Goro, honey, where on earth did you find all this?” her face was frozen with shock as she looked down at the yen that filled the box.

“I’ve been saving it up by doing chores for people or turning in recycling!” his smile was well-passed ear to ear.

“I-I, thank you sweetie.” her voice had softened, and she wore a fond face gathering Goro into a tight hug.  
\------  
Looking back on it the gift probably meant so much more to his mother than he originally thought. It had become a sort of tradition with them to give his mother money on her birthday, steadily increasing the amount each year.

When he got his first part-time job at a convenience store and a small job at the school store, he began to help pay for the rent of the apartment or groceries.

His part-time work steadily helped his mother drop some of her extra jobs. She would come home earlier and be able to sleep full nights. Seeing his mother happier now made him feel really good.

His detective work and interviews had helped bring in more money than ever for him. This lets him indulge in more teenage ESC. things, like going to popular restaurants or shopping at a mall. He and his mother were becoming even closer now that she could be home more often. She talks to him about work or asks him about the school, or talks about current movies.

Goro was so glad. His mother was no longer overworked and exhausted, now that she had a chance to relax and be normal.  
\----

When Goro looks in the mirror, he’s glad he only sees his mother’s features. Light chestnut hair that has a slight curl at the tips. Dark garnet eyes. His slightly upturned nose and just most of his features, in general, look like his mothers.

He knows he must have some of his father's features somewhere, but he could care less. Why would he want to look like his absent no-good father? He thinks it’s fair that he only majorly shares his mother’s genes since she was the only one to raise him. 

He’s seen his father before. He’s a balding politician that could burn in hell for all he cares. He stopped watching the news when debates with him were on. He can tell his mother doesn’t like watching them either.

He’s been doing research, though. Trying to find anything against him to use in court. It’s been more of a side project, but now that it’s getting closer and closer to the election date he’s been getting more serious about it.

He’s been able to find several assault charges and has a sinking suspicion that he is tied to Okumura somehow. Actually, with all the information leaks as of late that have come out, his suspicion is growing outside of just Okumura.

The information leaks themselves were interesting. A small untraceable group called, ‘the phantom thieves' have been posting massive leaks of emails, official documents, and security footage of certain targets they have on a website. Everything they have shown has been backed up in later investigations.

A more recent example would be the Okumura leaks. Security footage that showed workers collapsing, Numerous violations of the ISH Law, and unpaid wages. Goro hasn’t been put on the case to investigate the thieves himself, rather he investigates their targets.

He can’t take an anonymous online group to court, but he can take corrupt CEOs. Goro doesn’t really approve of their methods, but it’s not like they’ll listen to a rookie detective. He can’t really be bothered at the moment though. With the election coming closer, as well as graduation, Goro’s been a bit preoccupied.  
\----

“-But Akechi-Sempai.” the boy with a black rat’s nest of hair whined.

“As much as I would like to believe your cat is here for emotional reasons, you can not have an unrestricted animal on school grounds.” He responded sternly.

Akira Kurusu was a newer introduction in Goro’s life. A so-called delinquent from Inaba joined Shujin Academy back in April. He’d managed to collect a decently sized group of misfits by August and has also managed to have a curious interest in Goro.

Not that the interest wasn’t reciprocated. Of course, Goro had heard the rumors (who couldn’t have by now), but Akira Kurusu didn't seem to fit the ruffian delinquent role he’d been given. For god’s sake, he snuck his pet cat to school and was at the top of his class. And yes, Goro had seen the assault report, sketchy at best in his opinion.

“-- We’re planning to go this weekend.”

Ah, right Kurusu had been speaking.

“I’m afraid I didn’t catch that last bit?” Akechi said with one of his practiced smiles.

“We were planning on going to the underground mall this weekend. Makoto wanted me to invite you.”He said looking up at Goro with his gun-metal eyes hidden behind fake frames.

“Ah, well, I’ll have to see if I have work then, but if I don’t I’ll see if I can join you.” 

“Great. Do you mind if I give you my number so you can tell me then?”

“Oh, not all.” He said without thinking.  
\------

Only later did he realize he had gotten Akira Kurusu’s number.

\------

“I’m glad you and Nijima-chan have been getting along more.” Goro’s mother commented after he had told her about going to the mall that weekend. Makoto and Goro had been known to get into arguments more often than not, and constantly fought over the top marks in their class. As of recent though, they’ve seemed to have calmed down quite a bit. They’ve actually been having normal civilized conversations with each other. 

“I guess I am too. She gets a bit scary when competitive,” He says with a relieved smirk.

“If you don't have work, go with her and her friends.” She looks up at him from her bowl. She has a hopeful look on her face.

“I was planning to, but I still need to check in with Sae-san for Saturday.”

“I guess with all those leaks about Okumura Foods, the SIU would be busy.” She responds matter-of-factly. She was right though, the leaks had caused a need for investigation of the factories. His job was combing through it all and getting all the charges and theories down for Sae-san’s court case. It didn’t help that the CEO of the company managed to get himself in a coma before interrogations started.

“I’ll be working later Saturday night, so you just need to be back before midnight if you plan on going with them.” She says, casually stirring her instant noodles.

\----

He somehow managed not to have work that Saturday, a hopeful part of him says it must be fate. The more logical part of his brain shuts that down fast though, simply saying it’s just his luck.

Makoto, Kurusu, and Takamaki-san were all waiting near the entrance of the mall for him when Goro arrived. 

“Alright he made it!” Takamaki-san said victoriously, a huge grin was plastered on her face when she stood up to stretch and to greet him. Her blonde hair is just about as animated as her, as it seems to move with a mind of its own. She was wearing tight high-waisted blue jeans with a graphic t-shirt and jewelry. She seems to have put more thought into her outfit than Makoto or Kurusu, who both seemed content in their t-shirts and hoodies.

“This was mostly Ann’s idea. She says I lack modern taste and that Akira needs a new wardrobe from his things from Inaba.”Makoto says with an exasperated look on her face.

“You had mentioned not having anything other than formal clothes, so I thought I should invite you.” She continues.

“Ah, that’s quite thoughtful of you Makoto,” Goro says with a slight smile on his face.

\----  
They idly chat while browsing through the many stores. Takamaki-san gave her expert opinion on any clothing item they pulled off the rack. This usually led to a debate between them on ‘in what situation would Akira need a clown costume?’, and many more thrilling ideas.

Kurusu had been standing in one section of a store for a bit longer than normal so Goro went to see what he was looking at. On a few hangers were small sweaters made for cats.

“I was thinking about getting one for Mona.” He says casually like he isn’t staring at a sweater for a cat. It seemed pointless. Most cats had fur, so why on earth would they need a sweater.

Goro, still perplexed at the fact that they made sweaters for cats, had no response to Kurusu’s idea of getting his cat one.

\--” I don't know if Morgana would even sit still for that long, and doesn't that Iwai guy you and Ryuji were talking about have them cheaper at his place,” Takamaki-san says cutting through Goro’s train of thought.

“Yeah you're right, and I'll get a bonus discount for being his best customer,” Kurusu says with a confidant little smirk.

“I’m curious as to how you became a ‘best customer’ for this shop?” Goro asks with a hint of amusement in his voice.

“Futaba and I do a bunch of cosplay and even do big group cosplays with the rest of the crew. Iwai sells a bunch of model weapons and parts for cosplay that is extremely detailed, and I’ve ended up selling my soul to his shop,” He uses his hand to jest what he’s saying, making a casual conversation into more of a performance.

“He’s also an ex-yakuza member,” Makoto comments with a slight frown.

“I-I’m sorry what?!” Goro says taken off guard.

“An ex-yakuza member and he is a devoted father now and has cut all his ties with the mafia, thank you very much, Makoto.” He shots a look in her direction.

“Oh yes, my apologies, knowing an ex-yakuza is not even the worst thing you do around here,” Makoto comments sarcastically.

“Oh yes, working at a drag bar, how could I possibly forget?" he sounds like he’s making it a competition.

Goro’s mind is already fairly confused with the ex-yakuza information from earlier, so this fact throws him for even more of a loop.

“A bar, but you’re not even eighteen yet?” his voice sounds just as confused as his head is.

Takamaki-san lets out a laugh that sounds more like a cackle than anything. “Lala-chan doesn’t even let him near alcohol. He just washes dishes for her and talks with the customers.” She says in between her laughing fit.

“She doesn't even let me dress up.” He says with faux disappointment.

“Yes truly a dangerous delinquent, washing dishes, buying cosplay for his sister, and purchasing cat sweaters.” Makoto sounds amused.

\-----

The mall trip was over sooner than he knew it. The small group in Shibuya had realized it had gotten pretty late and picked up a quick dinner at a small diner. They parted ways soon after.

Goro had managed to pick up a red hoodie, some jeans, and a small keychain that had a pancake charm on it. He just barely caught the last train to his neighborhood. When he got to his apartment, he noticed that the lights were on, meaning that his mother had gotten home earlier than he expected.

“Mom I’m home,” He says while sliding his shoes off at the door. He set the bag full of his clothes down on the small kitchen table.

“Welcome back, how was it?” she asks politely. Her light brown hair is tied back into a messy bun, strands falling into her face when she stands up and walks over to Goro.

“It was good. Makoto brought two of her friends along, Kurusu and Takamaki. I believe I've told you about them before?”

“Oh yes, Kurusu-Kun is that boy that transferred back in April right?” She asks while looking over Goro’s hoodie.

“Yes that’s the one, and Takamaki-san is the model I’ve pointed out in magazines before.”

“Oh yes, the one girl with blonde pigtails, right? I’ve seen her around. She seems talented for her age” She answers back while nodding her head. 

“Yes, they are all rather talented, sociable as well” Goro comments with a smile. His mother wraps one of her arms around his shoulder and gives it a light squeeze.

“I’m glad you got to go, you seemed like you had a good time.” She says while smiling.

\---

Being student council vice president meant basically the same thing as being president at Shujin. The major differences were that he didn’t work with the teachers and principal as often as Makoto. Mainly he helped with his usual duties as well as enforcing rules.

Technically being on the roof without permission from a staff member had always been against the rules. After the event back in April with Shiho Suzui, the rule has been more enforced. The door to the roof is always locked, there are gates around the perimeter of the roof, and the doors are barricaded shut.

So how earth did Kurusu and his friends make it up there every day? He had a few theories, but in the end, it doesn’t matter all that much. Deciding to ignore it saves him the effort. He’d tell them to leave, and they would then show up there the next day. He’d rather not piss off the group anyway, since he just started to get to know them.

\-----

If you asked Akira, Goro Akechi was an anomaly. Akira didn’t know much about him, most of what he knows came from Makoto’s rants. Akira could see that he was smart and hard-working, but there was more behind it.

It’s not like Akira doesn’t want to know more about him. But If he asked outright he might get some looks from the group. Ryuji hates the guy. Makoto and him have a rivalry of sorts. The rest of the group doesn't know much. Futaba on one hand could search the internet for anything covering him, but that feels a little invasive if you ask Akira.

There was just something interesting about him. Something underneath his pretty exterior. Trying to get to know him was hard though. Small talk hardly got him anywhere, He was always busy, and he only really got the chance to talk to him at the mall trip. 

Speaking of the mall trip, after the trip Akechi seems to be slightly turning a blind eye to them. Usually, if they were on the roof he’d tell them to leave, but instead, he just looked through the door’s window and went on with his day. No one else seemed to notice this though.

Akira always seemed to notice these little things. Haru planted even more vegetables so she wouldn’t have to go home to a team of investigators asking her about her father. Or when Futaba goes still and silent in public. Hell, he even notices when he’s stimming.

So maybe befriending Akechi could offer more insight into what lies behind the surface.

\---

A junior detective was not a title the SIU passed around easily. So maybe that’s where Akira should start. From what he knows from Makoto, Akechi worked alongside Her prosecutor sister. After all the evidence was reviewed and combed through the elder Niijima would compile it into a substantial court case.

Recently though it’s been easier for them with the leaks. Basically from what Akira can guess it goes something along the lines of leaks come out, investigation, charges are locked down, and then they go to court. Although his thought process would probably be considered a crude and oversimplified set up of what actually happens. But it gets the point across.

So how on earth did a teenager manage to get swept up as a detective, and by proxy, be able to have earned enough trust to investigate big-name figures? Maybe working with Sae Nijima had earned him enough of a reputation to be trusted. Or he might have just completed enough cases to be known as a hard worker in his field. Akira’s mind trails off into a list of possibilities but gets cut off by the lunch bell.

\---


	2. Just one more bite

Step one of asking Akechi about himself would be to find him. This seems like it wouldn’t be hard at all given that he is the student council vice president. However, this proves to be more of a herculean task than he thought. Akechi was either in class or at his job, no in-between. Unlike Makoto who could be found in the student council room in her free time.

Now if Akira was a bit smarter he would have realized that he had Akechi’s number in his phone from their trip to the mall with Ann and Makoto. But he doesn’t realize until after running around the school looking for him all day. Morgana sends him a dirty look after shaking him around all day long in his school bag. Akira can’t imagine that it’s comfortable there.  
When he gets back to. Leblanc shucks off his shoes and sends Akechi a quick message. He has to run back down the stairs to help Sojiro with the afternoon crowd.

Me (3:32 pm): Hey would you be interested in coming to a cafe down in Yongen with Futaba and me?

\----  
Goro wasn’t to get a text from anyone this afternoon. His mother had been at work all day and wouldn’t get off to at least 5 pm. If it was work it would have been a phone call or an email. So he was pleasantly surprised when he found out it was Kurusu asking him to come to a cafe. Truthfully he hadn’t been to Yongen much, most of his work was in Shibuya or Kichijoji.

He thinks of a few ways of responding before getting distracted by an ache in his shoulder blade from arching over his chair to much.

He takes a moment to stretch at his desk chair. Luckily most of his work can be done from home on his work computer. It’s not that he dislikes the office though. The office is usually petty quiet aside from the occasional conversation across the room. It seems the people there bother him more. Most of the higher-ranking officials tend to look down on him since he’s a teenager. Goro finds that their judgemental stares are not good for his work ethic.

So he finds himself working in his small apartment or with Sae san. He’s never noticed Sae judging him because of his age or skill level, maybe part of that is because she joined the SIU fairly young as well.

Thinking about it Sae had recommended a cafe down in Yongen earlier in the week. Maybe she and Kurusu have similar pallets?

\---  
His mother gets home a little later in the night taking a deep breath when she walks in the door. She still looks tired but at least she’s not on the verge of collapsing like she was when Goro was younger.

They’d talked about how she didn’t want Goro wasting his years as a teenager working all the time so he could help pay for their necessities. Goro had countered it by saying he didn’t want to see her waste away from her work either. It was a rather difficult argument for the both of them.

Luckily they’ve found a way to balance work and their lives outside of it. But that didn’t mean they couldn’t feel tired from work. They still have to bite off more than they could chew to make sure there was food and the bills got paid.

Goro had been taking more opportunities to speak in interviews about cases. His superiors had thought it was a good idea to have a younger face in the media regardless of how they felt about his skill level. Sae had commented that he was a natural at telling them what they wanted to hear. The media never wanted to hear about the methods they used to investigate or the gruesome details. They wanted a story to sell, and Goro obliged.

His mother had been taking a carousel of part-time jobs having small breaks in between. Most of them were retail work at convenience stores or working as a waitress at a few small diners. Her last job in the red light district had been in a small bar where she would serve drinks and would clean tables. After she had quit that job she would hardly step foot into the district. It concerned him a bit to hear that Kurusu Kun had been working at a bar in the area, he could worry about that in a little bit though.

“Goro, Honey they had a sale on those instant noodles you like so got some for tonight,” she says with a small smile on her lips.

She steps over to his small desk and rests her hand on his shoulder. He turns his head to face her taking his eyes off his current case.

“Oh, thank you. If you would like I can get them started,” he says, she lets out a small relieved sigh.

“That would be great honey,’’ she responds sweetly squeezing his shoulder slightly as she turns away.

Goro gets up to fix a pot for the water to heat up in falling into his usual night routine of fixing a quick dinner for him and his mother.  
\---

“Anything major at school I should look out for?” She asks between a bite of instant ramen.

“I’m afraid not. The festival isn't until late October early November so most of what we are doing with the council is planning events for it.”

“ Well nothing out of the ordinary can be a good thing,’ she says thoughtfully.

“Oh, you think so?” he asks with a tilt to his head. He has to brush his long hair back behind his ear, the fringe never wants to stay in place. He usually would have it tied up at home but hadn’t gotten around to it thanks to work.

“Even if things get repetitive it's good to have something stable to balance out everything,” She comments thoughtfully.

“I guess that's a fair point. With everything changing so often nowadays I should be glad there's nothing different every day. Work is hard enough with the new cases so I guess I'm grateful for some peace.”

He’s also grateful to have some stability, knowing that his home won't be taken away and his mother won't collapse as she walks through the door.

\---

When the two of them finish dinner Goro gathers the bowls up in his hands and places them in the sink. Dishes can wait a few days, but his emails finalizing evidence can’t. His mother walked into the bedroom, probably to get to bed early so she can make her early shift in the morning.

Thinking back to their earlier conversation, Goro’s glad they've been able to find their version of normal. It’s not perfect but he’s happy and so is his mother, and that’s all he can ask for.

\---

Goro Akehi still remains an anomaly to Akira. It's been a couple more days since he had seen Akechi last. Other than that Akira hasn’t caught a break. He's always in class or at work. Which is not time conducive to small-talk. He’s about ready to march up to Makoto and ask for Akechi’s schedule. 

Now that he thinks about it, Makoto would shut him down immediately. Akechi has a decent fan following at school so Akira probably wouldn’t be the first to ask for his schedule. As well as Makoto questioning why he wants his schedule in the first place. That in itself just boils down to wanting to get to know him.

Akira just feels as if he’s hit a brick wall. 

But then a spec of hope shines through this impenetrable brick wall. He finally gets a response for the invite to Leblanc, albeit four hours late.

Akechi (7:24): My apologies for not responding earlier. I’d be happy to join you at the cafe you mentioned over the weekend.

Just like that Akira’s mood had turned for the better. It's strange how just a single text could do that. Morgana meows in confusion in his sudden burst of positivity. Suddenly cleaning the cafe didn’t seem so bad.

\--  
“You can stop wiping the same spot on the counter your crush won't be here for another couple hours,” Futaba says sarcastically from her booth in Leblanc. She’s typing away on a mobile game. Her hair is splayed out in an orange curtain on the table.

“He’s not my cush, Futaba,” Akira comments while glaring at her across the cafe.

“Sure he isn’t. Why else would you invite him to Leblanc, huh?” She responds sticking out her tongue in a teasing manner.

“I invite everyone to Leblanc,” he retorts passively. He’s moved on from scrubbing the counter to washing what few dirty dishes they have left in the sink.

“Yeah, but not everyone is the ‘hot vice president who is also a junior detective from school’, Akira,” she sticks her tongue out at him and goes back to her mobile game.

“When you say it like that you sound like one of his weird admirers or something,” Akira says while trying to get Morgana to stop drinking the faucet water. He scoops him up into a baby-carry, which of course Morgana tries to wiggle from.

“Brat cat,” Akira huffs out under his breath.

“And are you not one of his admirers, Akira?” Futaba says making sure the focus stays on their conversation.

“All I did was invite him for coffee, Futaba. I’m hardly at the level of harassing him every waking moment outside of class,” He says defensively. Morgana has taken residence in Futaba’s lap and is glaring daggers at Akira for not letting him drink tap water.

“Mona don’t look at me like that. I’ve been trying to get Yusuke to stop drinking tap water, I don't need you to start.” It comes out like one of Sojiro’s exacerbated sighs, it's kinda scary how much the old man has rubbed off on him.

“Hey, Taba could you run to the store across the street. We’re almost out of honey and apples for the curry,” Akira says casually while checking the fridge and racks of spices in the back of the cafe.

“Do you know where Mona’s harness is?” She asks to check her book bag for it. Morgana is, strangely enough, great stress relief for the both of them, and with a little bit of work, they got him registered as a service animal. They had gotten Morgana a service animal vest so he and Futaba could take him into public spaces without being told to leave. The only place this doesn’t work is in school. But Shujin was a whole bunch of BS anyway.

“Upstairs on the work desk, I had to sew it up after it got snagged on something sharp.” He answered back.

“Alright thanks,” She said in a hurry while heading up the stairs. After a few minutes of making sure the harness wasn’t too tight, mona hopped into her bag and they were off.

Futaba had shown a huge improvement from earlier this year with her social skills. Yogen Jaya was no sweat for her now. Most people living around there knew the two of them or at least knew Sojiro. Which made talking with people a lot easier. The cashiers at the local corner store knew that either he or Futaba come in for groceries during the week and usually are very friendly and help Futaba reach the high shelves.

They also know Morgana which leads to the cat getting more free tuna than he needs. And if that keeps up Akira will have to resize that harness again.

\---

It has been a while since anyone has come to Leblanc. Or at least anyone that he wanted to impress. Meaning Akira hadn’t impressed anyone with his coffee-making skills. The last person was Haru, and if he is being honest she’d probably say it had tasted amazing regardless of how good it was.

Hopefully, Akechi would be amazed by his months of training. Akira realizes that all this extra effort may be something that would happen in a romcom where the main character is waiting for the love interest. But he quickly squashes that idea figuring it’s just Futaba’s comments getting into his head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos, a comment, or criticism is greatly appreciated, and feel free to ask me any questions.


	3. go ahead and take a sip

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is totally not a date.
> 
> Unless ;)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof sorry, it took me longer than usual to get this chapter out. But we're getting to the cute bits so I got to make sure it's my best stuff!

\------

This is most certainly not a date.

This is just a meet up with a friend. Like that time at the mall with Ann and Makoto.  
Except for this time, they’ll be alone in the cafe that he lives in. But no matter what Futaba has to say about it he will not fall for the whims of a mysterious pretty boy.

Hopefully, this ‘meet-up’ will serve its purpose of helping him understand Akechi better. Using his wit and conversation skills hopefully, he could at least find out some trivia knowledge about him.  
\---

Yogen was a bit of a tricky place to navigate. The streets seemed to intertwine and fold into each other. Making it entirely too confusing to find the cafe Kurusu had recommended. Luckily after some deliberation, he was finally able to find Leblanc.

It was tucked away in a little nook near a supermarket. A cozy atmosphere surrounds the place. It’s a bit homey as he watches a few stray cats rest out in the sun.

The door opens with a chime. Immediately he’s hit with the smell of coffee and spices. An interesting but rich blend of smells to say the least. A black blur runs past his feet and slowly stops at his legs to rub its fuzzy head on his pant leg.

Oh, Kurusu’s cat. Morgana was it? Goro reaches down to scratch at his ears. Luckily any cat hair left on his pant leg won’t be that noticeable since his fur is black.

“Oh, hello!” Kurusu’s voice chimes from the back of the cafe. He seems to be cooking something on the stove. Curry? It smells like it. Meat, potatoes, and carrots the thought of it makes Goro a little hungry. But curry is a bit of a weird thing to serve at a coffee shop isn’t it? 

Goro takes a seat down at one of the bar stools. He sets down his briefcase near the legs of the stool.

“Hello there, Kurusu,” Goro answers. Kurusu has on a green apron and is stirring a batch of curry as well as having a couple of coffee makers going. So it was curry. Interesting.

“I can’t help but notice you’re making curry. Isn’t that a bit of a strange pairing with coffee?” Goro asks politely.

“That’s what I thought at first too. You would think coffee shops would have some pastries or whatever, but Boss brings out this pot of scientifically perfect curry. It works surprisingly well together,” He replies with a wild grin.

“I find a lot of curries to be a bit too spicy for my liking so I don’t eat it often. Unless my mother brings some home from work,” He says casually.

Kurusu leaves the curry alone for a minute to pour some of the coffee from the machines. 

“What type of coffee can I get you?” He asks.

“Just the house blend, please,” Goro answers back.

Kurusu goes back to meddling with the coffee machines until he has two cups full. He sets them onto the bar with a clink and goes back to fussing with the curry. Morgana curls up on the stool next to him.

“Usually if I was just making curry for myself Morgana likes to perch on my shoulder and watch me make it. He can’t have the curry itself but he gets some of the rice I make,” Kurusu chats casually.

“Seems like a lucky cat. Spoiled rotten I assume,” Goro says jokingly. 

“You guessed it detective Although I’ve tried to chill on the spoiling it's hard to control with   
Futaba and Boss,” Akira responds.

Goro reaches to scratch Morgana's ears. The cat leans into the leathery material of his gloves and lets out a soft purring sound. Goro’s never been a huge fan of cats, dogs had always been his favorite, but Morgana seemed rather friendly. No wonder Kurusu tried to sneak him everywhere he went.

The clink of two plates against the bar snaps Goro’s attention away from Morgana and back up to Kurusu. He’s finished the curry and is taking off his green apron. He walks around to the side of the bar and takes a seat on the other side of Goro.

“Hope it’s not too spicy. I tried to make sure there wasn’t too much in it for you,” Kurusu comments.

It’s oddly thoughtful of him. Even if it was too spicy Goro would have slogged through it to not seem rude. It’s nice of him to care at least to this extent.

“Ah, thank you. You didn’t need to do something like that for me,” Goro says in gratitude.

“It’s no trouble, seriously,” Kurusu responds. Morgana has hopped off the stool to pester Kurusu for food. Goro takes a scoop with some beef and rice. It’s surprisingly flavorful. The curry powder isn’t too strong and it has just the right amount of sweetness and richness to it. He can’t help going in for another bite.

“Good?” Kurusu asks with a chuckle. Goro blushes a little, embarrassed that his enthusiasm got the better of him.

“Very. It’s probably the best curry I’ve had in a long time,” He says truthfully.

“Like I said, scientifically perfect. ‘Taba’s mom made the recipe and ensured it to the Boss. I’m lucky enough to get it by proxy,” Kurusu says between spoonfuls. Morgana is fruitlessly pawing at him for some but to no avail.

“I’m somewhat jealous you get to have it so often,” 

“I’ve played around with some of the add-ins now and again so I don't get bored of it. So long as the based ingredients stay the same you can add a plethora of stuff to it,” He informs.

His enthusiasm is adorable. Or well, maybe charming is more appropriate. Goro swears there are little sparkles in his eyes. He can’t help but let out a chuckle.

“Something funny?” Kurusu asks.

“Ah, it’s just impressive to see how passionate you are about this,” Goro replies. Kurusu seems to grow his own blush at that statement.

“Just wait till you hear Boss go on about coffee for two hours. I’m pretty good at house blends and American-style drinks but Boss is still handling the harder specials,” he comments.

“I know the feeling. At work, they try to give me ‘easier’ cases since I’m still just a part-time worker and a student,” Goro adds.

“And what does ‘easier’ cases mean?’ Kurusu inquires

“Missing person cases, robberies, breaking and entering, and any other little things that come up. Basically, they keep me off murders, suicides, tortures, serial killers, and anything ‘too’ gruesome for a high schooler,”

“Rough” Kurusu huffs out. 

“Some people consider it to be the ‘boring cases’, but the paperwork says otherwise. It’s not as bad as it seems there engaging and more helpful,” Goro responds.

“More helpful?” Kurusu asks with a cute tilt of his head, well not ‘cute’. It’s more cat-like if anything.

“Well with robberies if we can catch the perpetrators we can usually return the stolen property. Or if a child gets kidnapped we can hopefully return them to their families or a hospital. But with murder cases we can only put the murderer behind bars, we can’t ‘un-kill’ the victim,” He says staring into his cup of coffee.

“I can see where you’re coming from. Some of the smaller crimes you can reverse the offenses, but with the others, there is only so much you can do to help,” Kurusu answers back.

“Exactly,” Goro says in between bites of curry.

“So if that’s how you feel about those kinds of physical cases, how do you feel about digital ones like the phantom thieves?” Kurusu asks.

“Ah, well those cases are tricky. The information they unearth helps put criminals away but their methods are questionable. A lot of it is obtained illegally, so if they were ever caught they would have to serve time for that,” Goro says contemplatively.

“So they’re superheroes with a gray morality,” Kurusu offers up.

“That’s one way to think of it, Kurusu,” Goro answers back.

“Akira,”

“I beg your pardon?”

“Just Akira is fine. I’m not too formal about it,” He answers back.

“Oh, alright then, Akira,” Goro says with a small smile.

\-----

Okay, someone saying his name with a smile should not have wrecked his heart so much. But here Akira is with his BPM through the roof, face as red as a tomato. Luckily Akechi doesn’t seem to notice. Or if he does he's being merciful and not saying anything about it. So thanks to whatever god is looking down on Akira today.

So maybe Futaba was right. Good thing she can’t read minds yet or that would be recorded and saved in a vault. So maybe Akira has the smallest crush on Goro Akechi. Who doesn’t though? Who wouldn’t fall for a nice smile, a pleasant conversation, and compliments on their food?

Well maybe not Ryuji, or Yusuke for that matter, but that’s beside the point. Akira has to keep up with the charming detective, he can’t lose yet.

Technically he’s doing what he set out to do though, which was learning more about Akechi. So point to Akira, but he still needs more.

“So how’d you end up becoming a detective? From what I know it’s not something they hand out to high schoolers on the regular.” Akira asks, trying to start the conversation up again.

“Well, you’d be right about them not handing the title out often. Basically, I would do small personal projects or investigations and turn them into the police. I was also a frequent useful witness in smaller cases. Eventually, the department took note of it and offered me some part-time work with a supervisor. Which of course I didn’t turn down, even for part-time work it pays decently enough,” Akechi answers back

“I can get that. Extra money can’t hurt when you’re in your third year and planning for colleges. Although you might luck out with detective work and get a scholarship,” Akira comments.

“Well, aren’t you hopeful? But yeah getting a scholarship would be a blessing for my mother and me,” He says with a hopeful glint to his eyes.

“Oh, you live with your mom?”

“Ah, yes we've lived in Shibuya for a while now. It’s convenient for the both of us so we can get to work quicker,” Akechi answers back.

“I know what you mean. Besides living upstairs in Leblanc, there are some other small jobs here in Yongen Which are super easy to get to since I live in the area,” Akira comments.

They chat with each other for a little longer until the news cuts across their conversation. “Masayoshi Shido releases new plans for Japan if he is elected prime minister in December.” Akira freezes up on the name he can’t even turn to look at the TV he’s just stock still.

Akechi on the other hand is staring into his cup of coffee with enough force to incinerate it. His gloved hands gripping each other hard enough to break. He’s shaking slightly. Luckily a commercial break cuts across the news. Giving Akira enough time to switch it to a variety show.

Letting out a shaky breath he sits back down next to Akechi. He’s seemed to unclench at least a small amount.

“Take it you’re not a fan of politics,” Akira asks, trying to lighten the mood to some extent.

“You could say that,” He responds shakily.

“Not even sure why it was on that channel. Boss doesn’t like to listen to them bicker and ‘Taba prefers Feather Men,” Akira comments.

“It’s quite alright, Akira. It’s about time I head out anyway. Thank you very much for the coffee and curry. It was excellent,” Akechi says while standing up. He extends a hand for Akira to shake. His leather gloves smooth against Akira’s more calloused skin.

“Thanks for coming. It’s not often we get a new customer around here, “ Akira says with a smile. And with that Akechi heads out the door.

Akira walks back around the counter to clean. He picks up the cash Akechi left on the counter. Akira notices something shimmer underneath the lip of the counter. He peers down and notices a blocky shape. Akechi’s briefcase. Crap.

Akechi just left and he couldn’t have gotten far. Plus Yogen’s twisty alleyways might slip him up. Akira runs but around the counter and scoops up the heavy briefcase. He thought it weighed something but jeez this thing is heavy. How does Akechi get anywhere? Thinking about it though, this thing would serve as a good weapon in a pinch.

Nevermind all that though Akira thinks as he bolts out the door. Left? Right? The train station, that's where he needs to go. Akechi lives in Shibuya and he’d need to take the train to get there. Okay just turn there and….

BAM!

Akira lands with a thud and a groan. But wait. What he landed on does not feel like pavement. Actually, pavement didn’t groan in response when you fell on it either. Crap. Boney, Fabric, and a beating heart. Yep, Akira just accidentally flew and tackled someone onto the cement. Goddammit.

He lifts his head from the person’s chest and looks at their face. Brown hair, Red eyes, and redder than a tomato. Their faces are way too close, Akira could even see a small dusting of freckles on the bridge of his nose. Akira’s frozen in place, if he didn’t think Akechi was pretty before he does now. Akechi lets out a soft whimper snapping Akira back to the real world.

Akira immediately shoots up and tries to scrabble off Akechi. He just ends up tripping on his ass, but at least he isn’t on top of the guy anymore. 

“Uh, um, ...God I am so sorry about that. I was just trying to get your briefcase back to you since you left it at Leblanc. I didn’t mean to tackle you like that. Seriously I’m super sorry about this,” Akira says in one panicky breath.

“Ah.. uh. It’s no trouble Akira. I’m glad you got it back to me. But next time just text me,” Akechi says while dusting himself off.

If Akira hadn’t already felt like an idiot, he sure did now. Of course, he could’ve just texted. God, why does his brain run a mile a minute instead of thinking properly? 

“Thank you, Akira. Have a good evening.”

“You too,” Akira replies.

Okay who would blame him if he kinda hoped that he and Akechi were on a date?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to leave a kudos, comment, or criticism <3
> 
> I'm always open to questions about the story too!

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos, comments, or criticism is greatly appreciated <3
> 
> Also as a side note when goro collected around 10,000 yen as a child it converts to about 100 dollars, I figured some where from 80-100$ is a good estimate of what he could make if he was doing all that stuff and saving up.


End file.
